The vice speaker of Russia’s Federation Council, Konstantin Kosachev, said the current price of Russian gas is a significant driver of Armenia’s economic development, responding to remarks by National Assembly Speaker Alen Simonyan.

He described such framing of the issue as inappropriate, noting that the Russian president had merely stated a fact regarding gas pricing for Armenia, as reported by Sputnik Armenia.

According to him, this reflects the reality in which Armenia lives and develops its economy, gaining notable competitive advantages amid the global energy crisis unfolding in Europe and worldwide, which he said was not caused by Russia but by other countries.

“The current price of Russian gas is both a powerful stimulus for the development of many sectors of Armenia’s economy and a significant factor of social and political stability in the country. It would be fair and honest for Armenian politicians to take into account the scale of support provided by Russia to Armenia, rather than speculate on hypothetical changes in pricing policy,” Kosachev said.

On April 1, Russian President Vladimir Putin, during a meeting in the Kremlin with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, stated that Armenia receives gas at a significantly lower price than Europe—around $177.5 per 1,000 cubic meters compared to roughly $600 in Europe.

Commenting on Putin’s statement, Armenian Parliament Speaker Alen Simonyan said that if the price of Russian gas increases, Armenia could reconsider its participation in the Collective Security Treaty Organization and the Eurasian Economic Union.